How to Draw A Panda

Before learning how to draw a panda: some fun facts before starting sketching!

Most pandas can be found in China.

They are very agile in trees.

A panda can weight up to 300 pounds and can spend around 15 hours eating!

Step 1

Before we start learning how to draw a cartoon panda, let's take a look at the physical characteristics of this adorable animal. The panda has a black and white coat. His ears (1), his muzzle (2) and his legs (5) are black.

He also has black patches on his eyes. His belly is white (3). Notice how the panda looks heavy and lazy when he sits down (4).

Step 2

Now if we take the same picture and try to visualize some basic shapes, the panda is really recognizable with his black patches on the eyes and his small round ears. He really look like a bear who has watched TV for 48 consecutive hours! If you look closely, you will see that this animal is made of several circles and some squares.

Step 3

Ok! It's time to draw our first cartoon panda! On this example, I will only use circles as a basic shape. First, let's draw two circles for the head and the body. Then, add some circles to form the ears, the legs and the arms.

Add the fine details like the eyes and the nose at the end. If your drawing looks like a panda, bingo! You achieve your first goal of drawing this cute animal with one very basic shape, the circle!

Step 4

The last step belongs to you. It's time to draw more pandas using different basic shapes! Look at all 6 drawings below. They're all different yet we are able to recognize the panda in all of them.

Be creative! Try one with two big black patches on the eyes (5)! Try another one with tiny ears and a big head (2). Go on and find your style! Have fun!